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Ben Baby, ESPN Staff WriterOct 21, 2024, 03:11 PM ET
- Ben Baby covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN. He joined the company in July 2019. Prior to ESPN, he worked for various newspapers in Texas, most recently at The Dallas Morning News where he covered college sports. He provides daily coverage of the Bengals for ESPN.com, while making appearances on SportsCenter, ESPN’s NFL shows and ESPN Radio programs. A native of Grapevine, Texas, he graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor’s degree in journalism. He is an adjunct journalism professor at Southern Methodist University and a member of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA).
Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase wanted to wait until game day before participating in any trash talk toward the Cleveland Browns.
When the teams finally faced off in Cleveland on Sunday, Chase made up for the silence. After he caught an 18-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter, Chase stepped over Browns cornerback Greg Newsome II in an homage to Allen Iverson’s iconic step-over against the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2001 NBA Finals.
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“I told y’all before the week started that a lot of trash-talking was going to be done during the game,” Chase said after Cincinnati’s 21-14 win. “That’s what took place. It got me a little bit excited today.”
The three-time Pro Bowler finished the game with five catches for 55 yards and the touchdown that gave the Bengals a 14-6 lead over the Browns in the third quarter. It was the kick start Cincinnati needed to pick up the franchise’s first win in Cleveland since Oct. 1, 2017.
That made all the midgame banter between him and the Browns defenders even sweeter.
“It feels great to have a [win] here finally and talk trash here and get a [win],” Chase said. “That’s what I’m excited for.”
In the past, Chase has issued barbs through the media that didn’t age particularly well. Last season, he referred to the Browns as the “Elves,” referencing the team’s mascot that is also painted at midfield. Cincinnati eventually lost the game, 24-3, in the season opener.
“It’s frustrating because I called their ass ‘elves’ and we just lost to some elves,” he said last September.
This year he has taken a more measured approach. He said that, on two separate occasions, coach Zac Taylor told Chase he didn’t need to say so much.
“He was just saying, ‘Keep the words at a minimum,'” Chase recalled Oct. 17, a few days before this year’s matchup against the Browns. “Let my play do the talking, and that’s respectful. I can understand that.”
Chase’s Iverson celebration in Cleveland could be argued as his most demonstrative against an opponent in his four seasons in the league. But in a personal rivalry that has been as heated as any in his career, the act was the finishing touch on a pivotal play.
Said Chase, with a smile: “It was the perfect moment.”
